


Dance Like No One Is Watching

by MySweetPea



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Dancing, F/M, Meet-Cute, Pop's Chock'lit Shoppe, Sweet Pea and Reader, Sweet Pea x Reader - Freeform, Sweet Pea/Reader - Freeform, pop's
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-07
Updated: 2017-12-07
Packaged: 2019-02-11 21:44:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,866
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12944595
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MySweetPea/pseuds/MySweetPea
Summary: Reader is working at Pop's when Sweet Pea catches her dancing. This is the first time they are meeting.





	Dance Like No One Is Watching

The hardest thing about working the night shift was preventing the rush of boredom that usually comes rolling in after 1:00 AM. Fewer and fewer customers arrive, and there’s always less to do with every passing minute.

It was a Wednesday night in Riverdale, and most of the usual late night crowd had already stopped by. I had made it to 2:17 AM, and I was counting down the minutes until freedom. Sammy started her shift at 3:00 AM, so I didn’t have to scrub the same spot on the counter for much longer.

I loved working at Pop Tate’s. I’d worked there for two years now, and it was an easy enough gig with good enough pay. Since it was open 24 hours, I was able to work around my school hours fairly easily. The 7:00 PM to 3:00 AM shift worked well with my homework and sleep schedule, allowing me to just barely get four hours of sleep during the school week. I was always tired, but at least I made good money.

The silence of the shop could be eerie at times, especially at night when it was impossible to see what lay past the parking lot in the dark. When there were no customers, I liked to blast my favourite songs and dance while I cleaned and re-cleaned every surface.

Tonight was no different. My music blared through the audio system. I had a lot of different music in this playlist, but suddenly I heard the iconic opening notes of “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)“ by Eurythmic. 

I gave a shriek of delight, leaping down from the stool I had been slouching in. I grabbed my spray bottle of cleaning solution and began to dance like an idiot down the length of the bar counter, scrubbing and dancing at the same time. I kicked my leg high into the air, bobbing my head in different directions. I never cared what my dancing looked like when I was having a blast.

Little did I know at the time that someone stood outside, watching me dance in awe to the muffled music which could be heard all the way in the parking lot.

I danced to the entire song, infusing each second with high energy kicks, arm movements, and leaps through the shop. As the final note sounded, I was on the floor, breathing heavily. Over my panting, I heard clapping. My head jerked up at the sound, eyes wide in horror. Was Sammy early?

No, it was so much worse than that.

A very tall boy with tanned skin, dark brown eyes, and black hair was clapping sardonically in the entrance. He wore a black leather jacket over a blue plaid flannel and a white tee, accompanied by jeans that were faded and worn in all the right places. His silky hair curled around the collar of the jacket and fell across his forehead. He was the most gorgeous human being I had ever seen.

I couldn’t manage to get off of the floor. I stared from my kneeling position, still breathing heavily, trying to understand why this glorious man was standing in Pop’s at almost 2:30 AM. He strolled towards me, sticking his hands in his pockets. 

“That was amazing,” he said in a very sincere sounding voice. “I’ve never seen anyone dance like that. You really take that whole ‘dance like no one is watching thing’ to heart, huh?” He smirked at me, a sparkle in his dark eyes.

He reached out a hand towards me. I stared at the proffered hand for a moment before grasping it and allowing him to help me upright. His hand was large and warm in my grip, and it felt like I held his hand forever as I stood. I tried to quickly drop his hand once I was safely on my own two feet, but he held on.

“Thanks, I think,” I said, my voice cracking slightly. I was staring at our conjoined hands, waiting for him to drop my hand.

He shook the hand still clasped in his. “You are quite welcome. My name is Sweet Pea.”

I blinked once, trying hard not to react visibly and insult his name. I smiled up at him, offering my name in response.

Sweet Pea dropped my hand and looked me over from head to toe. I knew I didn’t look my best in my end-of-the-night uniform, especially after my incredibly embarrassing dance session. I shifted uncomfortably.

He grinned, seeming pleased that his gaze had rattled me.

“So tell me, where did a beautiful girl like you learn to dance?”

“Umm well I’ve never taken lessons, but I’m sure you could tell that depending on how long you were watching,” I responded dryly.

“I think I saw from the very beginning until the very end,” he said slowly, “but if you want to start the last song over again and show me the whole routine from start to finish, I’ll know for sure.”

Oh no… I wanted to sink into the floor and stay there permanently. I could feel the blood rushing to my face as I blushed. My hands moved to cover my cheeks.

“Wow, I don’t think I can hate myself more than I do right now.”

The twisted smirk on his face dropped immediately, followed by a look of concern. He reached out and put a hand on my shoulder.

“Hey, no, please. I genuinely thought it was amazing. You looked so adorable and full of life. You don’t need to be embarrassed.”

I peeked through my fingers up at him. He looked sincere. I laughed slightly.

“I don’t know if I can agree with your taste in dancing, but I do appreciate it.” Both of us dropped our hands down to our sides again.

We had talked through an entire song, the next song starting at a louder volume and startling both of us. He looked around the empty diner, his eyes coming back to rest on me.

“Wanna dance some more?” he asked with a boyish grin.

I considered his offer. He had already seen me at my absolute worst. I might as well just have fun with it now.

“Why not?”

We danced through the next 3 songs before I collapsed into a booth, panting heavily. I was too out of shape for this.

Sweet Pea collapsed onto the bench across from me, panting and laughing at my reddened face. He shook his head thoughtfully, chest still heaving.

“I don’t think I’ve ever had this much fun before. Especially not at this time in the morning and in a completely legal way.”

I leaned on the table, still trying to catch my breath. “I know for a fact that I haven’t.” I smiled at him, thankful and happy and just having fun.

He just stared at me for a moment, looking a little lost. 

“What’s wrong?” I was concerned that he was going to pass out on me after that crazy dance party. There was no way in hell I could keep him from crashing to the floor if that was the case.

He shook his head to clear it and smirked. “Nothing’s wrong.”

We sat there, smiling at each other like idiots for what must have been a couple of minutes. My heart rate was coming down but I found myself feeling just as flushed as before as he gazed at me, our faces a foot away from each other across the table.

He cleared his throat finally. “So, how long have you worked here?”

“Around two years. It’s fun.”

Surprise flitted across his face. “Years?” he repeated.

I frowned in confusion. “Yeah, years. Why?”

He shrugged. “Just surprised I never met you before is all. I don’t come here that often but if I do, it’s usually at night when there are fewer Nor-people to stare at me.”

I blinked, realizing what he meant. I had spotted the serpent tattoo on his neck almost right away and I was trying my hardest not to stare at it or acknowledge to myself what it inevitably meant. As we had whirled around Pop’s, dancing together, I had managed to almost forget that this boy was a South Side Serpent.

I had heard a lot about the Serpents growing up. I had always lived on the North side of Riverdale, and while I was always reminded of the many privileges which came with it, I had never really understood the actual struggle that the Southside residents experienced until the whole mess with Jason Blossom. That event showed me a lot about the Serpents and the south side’s dynamics. I had read Jughead and Betty’s articles about the topic as they were published, learning more about how the Serpents were and were not involved. I had met many different Serpents before, including FP Jones. The Serpents would occasionally come to Pop’s, though what Sweet Pea said about Northsiders staring was very true, and most Serpents didn’t want to deal with the animosity when it would inevitably end with them getting in trouble for something.

I found myself nodding sympathetically. Of all the people who could have found me dancing like an idiot, I was glad that it had been Sweet Pea. He made me feel fun and exciting instead of embarrassing me.

“Well, I just started this particular shift when school started back up. I was working days before that. And I can understand why you wouldn’t want to come during the day. Some people in this town seem convinced that human decency and logic are horrifying things.” I smiled at Sweet Pea, leaning further across the table to tentatively reach for his hand.

His hand jumped back, away from mine. I froze, feeling unsure and awkward before trying to beat a hasty retreat back to my side of the table. I could feel my cheeks filling with blood in embarrassment. 

Of course he isn’t going to let you hold his hand, idiot. He’s a badass Serpent and you’re…a waitress at Pop’s who hops around like an idiot when you think you’re alone, I berated myself, twisting my fingers together awkwardly.

“Sorry, I just-you just startled me,” he said after a second. “If someone is reaching towards me, it is very rarely a positive thing.”

I blinked like an idiot. “Oh. Right. I didn’t mean-”

“No, I know. I’m just an idiot. Surprised me is all.”

He reached out for my hand, smiling at me in a very gentle way. I tentatively reached out again, letting his warm, calloused fingers envelope mine.

We sat there for a couple minutes without saying anything. The silence was comfortable between us. We were both watching the other’s face closely as we held onto each other.

Surprisingly, I felt extremely drawn to the Serpent. I don’t think any of my friends would have ever expected me to meet and actually connect with a Serpent. My friends and I weren’t exactly close-minded, but we didn’t go out of our way to meet people from different backgrounds. We were all pretty comfortable just sticking to what we knew, especially since we had all met each other in kindergarten and had just kind of stuck together throughout the rest of our schooling. Proximity and social circles were the definite predictors for whether someone would become our friend.

Sweet Pea broke the silence with a chuckle. “If my friends say we might now, I have no idea what they would say.”

“I was just thinking the same thing! They would probably be so confused how we even connected, especially if I told them that it was because you saw me dancing.”

Sweet Pea raised his eyebrow quizzically.

“They all hate my dancing,” I admitted, laughing.

“Well, I certainly enjoyed it. A lot. You’re not half bad for a Northsider.”

I rolled my eyes in an extremely exaggerated manner. “Says the guy who broke down and danced with me. Your reputation as a badass may be called into question if anyone hears about that.” I grinned mischievously.

“You wouldn’t dare!” Sweet Pea hollered, dropping my hand in fake outrage.

“Don’t mess with me or I just might!” I said, snootily raising my nose and crossing my arms before breaking into a huge grin.

Suddenly the bell over the door rang out. Sammy walked in, already chattering about to me about how awful her day had been and how she just needed a milkshake to make the world right again. I watched her in loving amusement. She always arrives like a whirlwind, leaving traces of her perfume and the echo of her boisterous voice behind her wherever she goes. I loved her like she was a member of my family. The age difference made her more like an oddball older aunt to me. She was a single mother in her mid-thirties with two adorable kids.

I turned to see how Sweet Pea was taking Sammy’s entrance. He was smirking at her slightly, not I could tell he wasn’t judging her.

Sammy finally looked up from trying to unsuccessfully unbutton her coat. “This DAMN coat al-” she froze, noticing the additional presence in the room. “Why, hello there, my lovely Serpent friend. You’re early tonight!”

I looked between them, slightly surprised. Based on the small number of people who came in after 1 AM, I had assumed Sweet Pea just hadn’t been in since school started. I guess he usually comes in after 3 AM instead.

“Hey, Sammy. How are the kids?” Sweet Pea asked, lounging back in his booth.

“Those little ankle-biters are pure perfection and evil in one beautiful package, and don’t pretend like you don’t know it!”

Sammy managed to finally get her coat unbuttoned and she fell into the booth beside me with a sigh.

“Now I suppose I have to pull out the protective momma speech and warn you that this boy here is just looking for trouble, right?” she said in her fake stern voice, wrapping an arm around my shoulder.

I bit my lip to keep from laughing out loud. “I don’t think Sweet Pea knows what trouble is. Look at that face.”

I was joking around with Sammy, but I also knew that Sweet Pea was watching us closely. I didn’t want Sammy’s attitude to scare him off.

Sammy snorted derisively. “And my left butt cheek is made of diamond encrusted gold.”

She stood in a whirl and rushed to the back of the kitchen to prepare for her shift. I stood reluctantly. I didn’t want to stop talking to Sweet Pea.

“I have to finish up here so Sammy can get started.”

Sweet Pea looked up at me from his spot in the booth. “Wanna ride home, Northsider?”

I felt my stomach leap at his words. I swallowed and tried not to look as excited as I felt.

“That would be really great if you don’t mind?”

“Not at all. I wouldn’t want you walking home alone at this time of day, especially with the Black Hood roaming the Northside of town.”

I gulped. I always tried not to think about the danger I put myself in every night. I knew the Black Hood was targeting Northsiders, and I bet he knew tons of details about all of our lives. With a quick nod of thanks, I turned and rushed after Sammy.

**—————**

When I came back from the kitchen 5 minutes later, Sweet Pea was in the same spot, staring out the window. I watched him for a moment, studying his profile. He looked tired more than anything else.

“You ready to go?” he asked, turning towards me with a knowing grin.

Embarrassed at being caught watching him, I bit my lip. “Yeah, of course. Thanks again.”

He stood and held out a hand for my bag. I gave it to him and shyly followed him out the door.

Sammy’s words to me when we were in the privacy of the kitchen ran through my head. I had asked her what her opinion of Sweet Pea was and she had responded with a warning.

“Sweetie, he’s a good boy. He’s a Serpent and he would die for them, but I know he would die for anyone he loves. Just be careful. I don’t want either of you to get hurt.”

I watched the back of Sweet Pea’s neck as he walked down the step before me. I could see the muscles in his neck working as he turned to look at the sleek black motorcycle resting in the corner of the parking lot.

I almost walked into his chest when he suddenly stopped and turned to me. 

“Are you good on a motorcycle?”

I shrugged. “Won’t know unless I try!”

He eyed me as a small smile twisted his lips. “Good to know. Let’s get you home.”

I buckled the helmet and held on tightly to Sweet Pea’s waist, heart in my throat. I couldn’t stop now; I had to know him. And if I found a guy who actually liked my dancing as much as Sweet Pea, I needed to hang on to him.


End file.
